TI Vol 14: Chapter 8-1

Zheng jumped. The others couldn’t use their weapons so they were fragile in front of this tanker bug. This bug appeared quite suddenly. Lan had been monitoring the underground the whole time. Yet she didn’t discover this tanker bug. Zheng also didn’t sense it as he was connected in soul link the whole time. Which meant this bug was masked by another psyche force user. It was an attack by the other team!

Zheng ran as he said in urgency. “Lan, mask this whole group even if it reduces your scan range. F*ck, we were too careless. They have been waiting for us to put down our weapons!”

“We were indeed careless… We had been holding our weapons so they didn’t bother masking the bugs even when they knew of our location. The bugs weren’t a threat to us unless they came in hundreds of hopper bugs. So they waited for us to merge into this group and masked the bugs that were going to attack us. Good strategy…” Xuan murmured.

The team looked at the tanker bug from afar. They had no choice but to dodge away. These federation weapons would merely scratch the tanker bug. Furthermore, since it unburrowed in the middle of the group, they couldn’t use the tactical nukes. Everyone was scattering. Every time the tanker bug sprayed flame, a few to a dozen people were burned to ashes. More and more bugs were coming out of the hole where the tanker bug unburrowed.

Xuan said in a low voice. “Wait and see. If necessary, we will wipe the area. Kill all the bugs and humans here, then find a way to merge into Platoon 6. It seems like there might be a change of plot that the Roughnecks die here. I am curious though if that other team will obtain points and rewards for the Roughnecks’ death.”

“Now is not the time to think about these. Find a way to escape first!”

Zheng over and heard Xuan calmly analyzed while the tanker bug was spraying flame at people. He didn’t seem like he was in a battlefield but rather discussing in a classroom. When Zheng came over to them, Xuan suddenly asked. “Do you still remember how the main character killed the first tanker bug in the movie?”

He was going to run with the team but this question stopped him. Zheng nodded. “You wouldn’t want me to go fight with Tiger’s Soul? Even though it can easily kill the tanker bug but don’t you think that’s out of a normal person’s capability? Slicing a ten meter bug in halves with a sword?”

Xuan waved his hand and said sarcastically. “Not telling you to do that. What you need to do is use a normal weapon, jump on its back, and shoot it. Shoot a hole in its back then throw a normal grenade in. Bang. You will become a sergeant or even a sergeant major. This identify is helpful to our following actions.”

“You are not wrong but…” Zheng pointed to the tanker bug and said. “You want me to kill this tanker bug while only showing strength that a normal person should have? And why does that sarcastic look on your face seemed to be saying ‘You have a fifty percent chance of dying’?”

Xuan’s expression didn’t change. “Correct. Judging by the speed these bugs are coming out of the ground, you have a seventy percent chance of dying if you go to kill the tanker bug unless you use Explosion and Tiger’s Soul. In two minutes, you won’t be able to even get close to the tanker bug. Make your choice. Oh, and in order to get the lieutenants’ attentions, see the grenade on that lieutenant’s waist? Go grab it and use it to kill the tanker bug. The usual rules. Try your best. When it gets too dangerous, kill everyone here with Tiger’s Soul.”

Zheng smiled bitterly. No matter how long it had been, Xuan’s plans were still similarly crazy, but it was also the most beneficial plan. He took a deep breath and sprint toward the lieutenant.

Zheng’s physical stats were much higher than a normal person, especially in strength and speed. The addition of the movement technique allowed him to sprint over to the lieutenant in just a few seconds. He grabbed the grenades on the lieutenant’s waist and charged away during his shock.

The lieutenant reacted instantly. He was only shocked for a moment then gave a shout as loud as he can. “F*ck! Everyone clear him a way! Kill all the bugs on the ground!” He raised his assault rifle and shot the eyes of a bug.

These troopers around were obviously elites. These should be the remaining troopers of the Roughnecks. They immediately focused fire on bugs on the ground. They had incredible accuracy, getting the bugs’ eyes and mouth with almost every shot. Many bugs were killed off in this shooting.

Zheng entered the third stage of the unlocked mode as he ran. He recalled YingKong’s movements and ran along those miraculous steps. Though he was quite troubled that he couldn’t run at full speed. He had to control himself as he ran. This short distance of not even a hundred meters took him twenty seconds since he had to ran around in left and right. He jumped on a bug’s corpse and used it to jump further. Three meters high got him close to the tanker bug’s leg.

The troopers held their breaths as they all stared at him. What people in a war of despair needed weren’t bullets or weapons but a hope. The Roughnecks were one such hope. And now, Zheng was another hope. Everyone was hoping for a miracle. No one actually believed Zheng could kill this tanker bug but they still screamed from within.

Kill it!

Zheng had to swallow the bitterness himself. It wasn’t that he couldn’t climb up to the tanker bug, all it took was a flip but that was out of a normal person’s capability. Fighting with a performance of a normal person was more difficult than fighting at full strength… The feeling of not being able to use his strength was terrible.

He pulled out the army knife and stabbed it into the bug’s exoskeleton. He flipped himself up while he pulled out the knife and stabbed again. After three repetitions, he got on the bug’s back. The bug moved violently as it seemed to understood what was happening. This bumping was useful against normal people but not to someone in the unlocked mode. Information of the bumping entered his head and he quickly balanced himself.

Zheng held the rifle on the bug’s exoskeleton and held the trigger. No matter how weak this rifle was, its destructiveness will accumulate with such concentrated impacts. The rifle finally broke the exoskeleton after several seconds. Zheng pulled the ring from the grenade without a second thought and threw it down. He jumped off the tanker bug while the bug charged around. He rolled on the ground and hit a warrior bug’s teeth. Those teeth immediately punctured his right arm. At the same time, a big explosion came from behind.

Both you and Shadow got the same right idea. Zheng increases his influence and popularity among the troops, which helps him actually get officially promoted with the buzz the troops create, and showing great merit will attract the commanders, officers, or whatnot, to assign him close to them.

Rank or not, that’s how you get on the good side of the local powers. And in the movie, he did hit Corporal.
Soz Aimless, you’re just raging right now at nothing.